Mad God Trailer: Phil Tippett Takes Us Inside His Nightmares

You may not know the name Phil Tippett, but you most certainly know his work. The VFX legend has been integral in the creation of some of modern cinema's greatest creature effects, from the animation for the AT-AT walkers and the tauntauns in "The Empire Strikes Back," to the dinosaurs in "Jurassic Park," to the robots in "RoboCop," and even the bugs in "Starship Troopers."

But while he was working on mesmerizing audiences with his work in "Robocop 2," Tippett was also working on an independent project that would become his magnum opus: "Mad God." This stop-motion descent into hell has been in the works for 30 years, dropped several times, revived thanks to a Kickstarter campaign, and now it is finally about to be unleashed upon the eyeballs of unsuspecting audiences.

The trailer for "Mad God" tells you shockingly little to what the movie is actually about. That's because, well, even if you do see the film it is shockingly hard to explain what it is about, other than it must be a distillation of the darkest, most gruesome nightmares Phill Tippett's had for the past three decades. It is more like a collection of silent vignettes than a proper narrative, showcasing increasingly deranged imagery and creatures that prove no one does it like Tippett.

If you are a fan of Genndy Tartakovsky's "Primal" and its silent yet brutal portrayal of pre-historic savagery, then "Mad God" should be right up your alley ("Repo Man" director Alex Cox even shows up as a curly fingernailed scientist!). If you don't believe me, believe our reviewer who said:

"Mad God" isn't a movie, it's an experience, and one that I implore anyone and everyone to immerse themselves in as soon as they possibly can. I fear I will spend the rest of my life trying to solve the puzzles hidden within "Mad God," knowing full well this is an impossible feat.

This is just the kind of personal passion project only a handful of filmmakers get to make, but we rarely get to see done in animation (let alone stop-motion). A singular vision rebelling against mainstream studio fare and showing the power of the medium to create unique (and quite violent) worlds.

"Mad God" will be unleashed on Shudder on June 16, 2022.

"Mad God" is an experimental animated film set in a world of monsters, mad scientists and war pigs. A corroded diving bell descends amidst a ruined city, settling down upon an ominous fortress guarded by zombie-like sentries. The Assassin emerges to explore a labyrinth of bizarre, desolate landscapes inhabited by freakish denizens.